The Art of Cloth Dyeing

Whether you seek to create your own fabric, give new life to old items or just play with colors, The Art of Cloth Dyeing is the class for you.

Join fiber artist Jane Dunnewold for a detailed and joyous exploration of color. You'll learn how to use fiber-reactive dyes and chemicals safely and effectively. You'll explore beginning and advanced resist methods, discover the secret to fast and easy washout, and salvage mistakes. Jane explains how dye bonds to different fabrics and how to create multicolored effects and patterns without muddying your colors. Achieve seductively rich colors that don't fade or run, whether you're creating the perfect fabric for a project or revamping thrift-store finds.

Lesson 10. Themes & Variations

We'll play with dye in this lesson: stacking color, pouring color, and the challenges of upcycling materials of unknown fiber content.

24:13

Lesson 11. Overdyeing

Learn how overdyeing works, the concept of saturation in fabric dyeing, and how to evaluate whether an extra dye bath will work and how to choose colors and techniques.

11:06

Lesson 12. Using Your Dyeing Skills

Explore lots of ways to use your new dye skills on new and existing garments, home decor, repurposed clothing, appropriated materials and many other cool things.

"So informative and enjoyable. I learned so much even though I have done dyeing courses in the past. I have always 'glazed over' when it came to understanding the chemistry but Jane explained everything so well and the section on overdyeing has answered a lot of my previous questions on how colours react. Can't wait to get started and will post pictures as soon as I have some dyed pieces. Thank you so much for such a fabulous class." - sowzereUnited Kingdom

5000+ students have enrolled in this class

Recently Enrolled

Student projects

Lesson plan

11:46

Lesson 1. Introduction

Meet Jane Dunnewold and find out why cloth dyeing is both thrifty and rewarding.

25:58

Lesson 2. Working With Dyes

Jane teaches the principles of color mixing and chemistry of fiber-reactive dyes. You'll learn how to mix and test your dyes and which components are non-negotiable.

20:08

Lesson 3. All About Fabric

Make the most out of your fabrics by learning how different natural fibers react to dyes and absorb color.

12:07

Lesson 4. Supplies

Learn about what you need to safely dye fabric at home and prepare for an easy clean up.

23:38

Lesson 5. Basic Fabric Manipulations

You'll learn a series of easy fabric manipulation techniques: pleating, folding, rubber bands and so on.

30:36

Lesson 6. Mixing Dyes

Learn the correct proportions of dye, water, soda ash and salt. You'll never waste dye or time after mastering these techniques.

11:57

Lesson 7. Color Contact

Learn about batching, the science of calculating how much time to allow for dyes to fully react and be absorbed into the fabric.

16:23

Lesson 8. The Washout

Jane shares the secret for fast and easy washout. Open up your bundles and see what your dye job created!

Lesson 10. Themes & Variations

We'll play with dye in this lesson: stacking color, pouring color, and the challenges of upcycling materials of unknown fiber content.

24:13

Lesson 11. Overdyeing

Learn how overdyeing works, the concept of saturation in fabric dyeing, and how to evaluate whether an extra dye bath will work and how to choose colors and techniques.

11:06

Lesson 12. Using Your Dyeing Skills

Explore lots of ways to use your new dye skills on new and existing garments, home decor, repurposed clothing, appropriated materials and many other cool things.

The instructor

Jane Dunnewold, Instructor of The Art of Cloth Dyeing

Jane Dunnewold says she got interested in dyeing and printing fabrics because every time she opened the fabric bundles it was like opening a birthday present. Jane runs Art Cloth Studios in San Antonio, Texas. She strongly believes in the endless possibilities of color. Jane's first book, Complex Cloth, was published by Martingale in 1996 and is still in print and used as a textbook around the world. Art Cloth: A Guide to Surface Design on Fabric was published by Interweave in 2010.

Ratings & reviews

Class rating

(81 reviews)

Dyeing To Know

by jmbigelow959528100743069 on February 26, 2015

Glad to have this class with JD following a class taken a few years ago. Let's me hear stuff again that I might have forgotten. I am one of the people who want to know how and why things work the way they do.

Glad to have this class with JD following a class taken a few years ago. Let's me hear stuff again that I might have forgotten. I am one of the people who want to know how and why things work the way they do.

Thank You Jane

by mhgelder on February 24, 2015

Awesome information and an non repetitive vocabulary, thank you!

Awesome information and an non repetitive vocabulary, thank you!

Art Of fabric dying

by BWild1 on February 2, 2015

Exceptional

by Rev. Gricel Bloom on January 26, 2015

You are transparent with yourself as you are with your skills. In my humble opinion as I have listened to most of your lessons , I can't possibly miss with my proves

class

You are transparent with yourself as you are with your skills. In my humble opinion as I have listened to most of your lessons , I can't possibly miss with my proves

class

Cloth Dying

by bead maven on January 18, 2015

Very easy to understand so far & has taken some of my concerns about working with MX dyes away. Jane has figured out a more manageable & practical way of handling the dyes.

Very easy to understand so far & has taken some of my concerns about working with MX dyes away. Jane has figured out a more manageable & practical way of handling the dyes.

Frequently asked questions

Other than the dye mixes, soda ash and a good dust mask and gloves, you probably already have everything you need to dye cloth successfully. A dye kit including Jane's preferred brand and color selection is available from the Craftsy supply shop.